Alert for PHMSA Covered Employers

Covered Employers of Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has an increased random drug testing by 50%

PHMSA Increases its random drug testing rate to 50% for 2018 and provides MIS Reporting Special Note

Per the Federal Register notice published this morning, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has increased its random drug testing rate to 50% for 2018 over the historical and current 2017 25% random drug testing rate. There is no change to the alcohol testing as there continues to be no random testing for alcohol for PHMSA.

https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2017-12-08/pdf/2017-26484.pdf

Following is the PHMSA’s rationale for the increase:

While the minimum annual random drug testing rate was 25 percent of all covered employees for calendar year 2017, paragraph 49 CFR 199.105(c)(4) requires the Administrator to raise the minimum annual random drug testing rate from 25 percent to 50 percent of all covered employees when the data obtained from the Management Information System (MIS) reports required by § 199.119(a) indicate the positive test rate is equal to or greater than 1 percent. In calendar year 2016, the random drug test positive rate was greater than 1
percent. Therefore, the PHMSA minimum annual random drug testing rate shall be 50 percent of all covered employees for calendar year 2018.

Also note the additional instruction highlighted below regarding MIS Reports for this year, 2017.

SUMMARY: PHMSA has determined that the minimum random drug testing rate for all covered employees will be 50 percent during calendar year 2018. Operators are reminded that drug and alcohol testing information must be submitted for contractors performing or ready to perform covered functions. For calendar year 2017 reporting, PHMSA will not attempt to mail the ‘‘user name’’ and ‘‘password’’ for the Drug and Alcohol Management Information System (DAMIS) to operators, but will make the user name and password available in the PHMSA Portal (https://portal.phmsa.dot.gov/pipeline).

DATES: Effective January 1, 2018, through December 31, 2018.